In the Heights - Toronto Centre For the Arts

Theatre has the power to change your life. It has changed mine. 
I remember the first time I saw RENT I had listened to all the songs and knew all the words before I stepped in the door. I sat and watched in wonder, I was transported in to this world. When the dancer sang the song 'Out Tonight' and she screamed at the chorus about how you go out and all the noise from the lovers and babies DIEEEEEEEEES I still remember my heart jumping. When the show was over I was crying so hard I was unable to stand. 

I remember watching the Elton John ballet LOVE LIES BLEEDING and realizing the power of dance, the effortless movements making me forget my seat, forget my body, until I was moving with them. 

I remember watching AVENUE Q for the first time about a million seats away from the stage and laughing my head off, drinking in the whole show and loving every second. 

I remember sitting in the beautiful huge new theatre downtown one hot night in summer watching NEXT TO NORMAL and feeling something I hadn't felt for a long time when the show woke me up, made me feel alive again, and for the next two months I listened to the songs every day until I knew every word, every breath. 

I remember traveling to London to see EQUUS and the border agent asking what I planned to do on my trip. When I said "See a play" she said "That's a long way to come to see a play.". It was worth it, to see emotion conveyed like that, to see someone check themselves at the door and totally become someone else was something I hadn't seen before. 

I remember going to see BARE at the University of Toronto's theatre and liking it so much I went again and again. I remember waiting outside for autographs and pictures, going back and taking friends, parents. 

And so you take chances, and you keep going to shows, and you keep seeing what's out there. 

And even though you're tired and it's freezing cold outside, you spend $90 and travel 45 minutes up town to go see IN THE HEIGHTS.  And it's tired and predictable and unrelateable and overwrought and you can't help but wondering why you bothered.